It's long past time our country acknowledges its responsibility for the Chagossians' exile and ensures these demands are met. Especially compared to the billions we've spent on Diego Garcia, it would take pennies to help repair the lives of those who've suffered for the base.

More than 23,000 schools out of 132,000 nationwide have or are discarding a highly punitive approach to school discipline in favor of supportive, compassionate and solution-oriented methods. Those that take the slow-but-steady road can see a 20 percent to 40 percent drop in suspensions.

Despite the loud voice of the National Rifle Association (NRA), scholars, experts on school safety, and teachers overwhelmingly disagree with turning schools into armed camps rather than places of nonviolent positive learning.

Coming from one of the worst environments since my parents divorce, I was in desperate need of help. I had just been thrown out of my high school for acting completely inappropriate, and having terrible fits of anger.

Public schools have essentially been turned into prisons with constant surveillance and harsh, often absurd zero tolerance policies towards drugs, alcohol, weapons, violence and other forms of misbehavior.